Angelo Trimarco on Naples' Art Scene from 1960 to 1980

In an interview with Artribune, critic Angelo Trimarco recounts the vibrant art scene in Naples from 1960 to 1980. Key galleries emerged: Il Centro opened in 1960 under Renato Bacarelli, later led by Dina Carola; Libreria-Galleria Guida with its Saletta Rossa opened in 1963, hosting international exhibitions; Lucio Amelio's Modern Art Agency debuted in 1965 with a Heiner Dilly show. Marcello Rumma, a collector and editor, collaborated with Filiberto Menna to organize the Rassegne di Pittura in Amalfi (1966-68), where Germano Celant curated 'Arte Povera più Azioni Povere' in 1968. In the 1970s, new galleries opened: Lia Rumma (1971), Studio Morra (1973), Studio Trisorio (1974). Piazza dei Martiri became the art hub. Amelio exhibited Beuys and Lia Rumma showed Kosuth in 1971. Superintendent Raffaello Causa integrated contemporary art into Villa Pignatelli and Capodimonte, including a 1978 juxtaposition of Caravaggio with Burri's Cretto Nero. In the 1980s, Terrae Motus collection featured Warhol and Beuys. Exhibitions like 'Evacuare Napoli' (1985) and 'Rooted Rhetoric' (1986) marked the decade. A museum of contemporary art was still lacking.